THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, May 6, 1995 TAG: 9505060453
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY BOB ZELLER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SONOMA, CALIF. LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
The Winston Cup road races are Ricky Rudd's trump cards for good performances, and he delivered with his usual skill and speed Friday at Sears Point International Raceway, winning the pole for Sunday's Save Mart 300.
Rudd got around this 2.52-mile, 11-turn road course in his Ford Thunderbird at a track record 92.132 miles per hour, beating Dale Earnhardt's 1993 record of 91.838 mph. The difference was about three-tenths of a second on the stopwatch.
It was the Chesapeake driver's fourth pole in seven Sears Point races and his 22nd career pole. And it was a bit of good news for a team that has had precious little good news in recent weeks.
Rudd was fined $50,000 at Talladega last weekend after an unapproved hydraulic device, designed to lower the back of the car for greater speed, was found in his car.
Rudd, in fact, seems to have a knack for responding to fines with pole-winning performances. Last October, after he was fined $10,000 for overaggressive driving at Charlotte, he won the pole at the next race at Rockingham.
``I felt like it was a fast lap, but I didn't think it was a really fast lap or a track record,'' Rudd said.
``I was just trying to go a little conservative. You can get off the course really easy, so you don't ever want to peak too early'' in practice, he said. ``You just want to time it until it's time to go and stand on the accelerator and arc those corners a little harder.''
``There's speed to be gained, but it's a fine line on this course. ''
Terry Labonte was second fastest in a Chevrolet Monte Carlo at 91.918 mph, followed by Mark Martin in a Ford at 91.712 mph. Earnhardt was fourth fastest in a Chevy at 91.588 mph, followed by Jeff Gordon in another Chevy at 91.481.
Also in the top 10 were Rusty Wallace, who qualified sixth at 91.444 mph in his Ford after blowing two engines in practice. Ken Schrader was seventh in a Chevy at 91.432 mph, followed by Kyle Petty in the fastest Pontiac Grand Prix at 91.260 mph and Dale Jarrett in a Ford at 91.177.
The upset of the day was Mike Wallace, who was 10th fastest in a Ford at 91.102 mph after coming nowhere close to that speed during practice.
One would have thought Wallace had won the pole the way his team was whooping it up.
``You were holding back on us, Bubba!'' a team member shouted to him as Wallace returned to the garage after his run.
Rudd said the track presented a tougher-than-usual challenge on Friday, a windy, unseasonably cool day.
``I'm not really sure why but the track seems to be quite a bit slippier than it normally is,'' he said. ``I don't know if it's the cooler temperatures or all the rain that they've had out here. But the tires seem to need about two laps of warming up before they're ready to bite the race track. So qualifying for everyone was pretty much a handful. Nobody's as comfortable as they want to be.''
Forty-seven cars made qualifying runs for 38 starting positions (plus four provisionals), but it appears that most, if not all, of the Winston Cup regulars will make the race.
In the danger zone at 38th and slower are (in order), Jeremy Mayfield, Winston West drivers Doug George and Terry Fisher, Robert Pressley, Scott Gaylord, Chesapeake's Elton Sawyer, Greg Sacks, Joe Heath, Dick Trickle, who spun during his run, and Ernie Cope, who also spun.
As it stands now, Pressley, Sawyer, Sacks and Trickle would receive the provisional spots.
``I'm trying to get all my education in a few hours,'' said Sawyer, driving Junior Johnson's No. 27 Ford a third week in a row. ``This is my first time to Sears Point. It's unlike anything I've done.'' by CNB